East Nashville News: Meat Ya in the Park, Walk Eat Nashville and more

Lots to do in the neighborhood this weekend, from eating to biking to bouncy-housing, plus lots of other East Nashville happenings.

On to this week’s East Nashville News:

Enjoy an events-packed weekend in East Nashville

Should you feel like packing your weekend with neighborhood festivities, this is a good weekend to do it. Coming up after the work week’s closed:

SATURDAY:

On Saturday, Nashville First Church of The Nazarene (510 Woodland St.) hosts the Health and HappyFest, “an annual event that celebrates holistic health while raising funds to support local adult educational programs,” wrangled by nonprofit organization Reaching Beyond International. (Those programs include computer classes, English language programs and more.)

The event, which runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., includes lots of stuff for kids — face painting, a bounce house, obstacle course — and all-ages offerings, including live music, dancers, international food, vendors, performances from Nashville’s Outcast BMX stunt team and more.

On Sunday, the second annual Meat Ya in the Park “backyard-style Community BBQ” hits East Park.

If the Meat spelling didn’t tip you, there’ll be lots of treats for carnivores at this one — bites from Hoss' Loaded Burgers, The Local Taco, The Vine, Puckett’s and others. (Plus vegetarian options from celeb chef Maneet Chauhan’s Chauhan Ale and Masala House and others.)

Outside of the edibles, Meat Ya also includes a pretty broad array of fun: a doggie watering hole and photo booth from The Dog Spot; fun for the young ones, including crafts and backyard games; DIY screen printing; contests and giveaways and a bunch more.

Revered Atlanta chefs headed to POP

Heads up, lovers of Japanese food: The latest installment of POP Nashville’s {CITY} Meets Nashville pop-up dining series brings guest chefs Angus Brown and Nahn Le of Atlanta’s Octopus Bar and Lusca to town, and they’ll be serving a five-course Japanese feast on Wednesday, May 20.

On the menu: chirashi (or “scattered” sushi) with sea urchin, octopus, kampachi and more; yakitori (grilled skewers of chicken liver, heart and thigh) and lots of other delicious-sounding bites. (Check out the whole rundown at POP’s website.)

The two chefs are celebrated in the ATL and beyond — Lusca was a James Beard semifinalist for Best New Restaurant, no small accomplishment.

A decade of goodness, plus changes at Italia

First, a congrats: Neighborhood eatery Italia Pizza & Pasta celebrates its 10th anniversary of sharing its titular eats with East Nashville this month. To go along with the milestone, owner Salem Elkhatib shared a few new twists coming down the pike.

Vegans and gluten-avoiders can rejoice, as Italia’s adding meatless meat and gluten-free pasta to the menu. The space is also getting some sprucing, with new wood cladding on the interior and signage and decoration that Elkhatib is DIYing, all East Nashville-like.

“Just like my own sauce and dough recipes, it's all my creation,” he says.

Walk Eat Nashville expands

More neighborhood food fun: Walk Eat Nashville — the walking food tour launched by East Nashvillian Karen-Lee Ryan — is adding a second tour location (to follow up the first, focused here on the East Side).

Ryan will be taking food fanatics out on Saturdays in Midtown, hitting Mason’s, Elliston Place Soda Shop, Tavern, Midtown Cafe, Gigi’s Cupcakes and Union Common, and following the same format as the original tour: three hours and six tasting stops (with meets-and-greets with chefs and proprietors) over a 1 1/2-mile walk.

The East Nashville tours still run Thursdays and Fridays, 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. and 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. respectively, with stops at Lockeland Table, Marche and other spots. Midtown tours are Saturday 1:30 to 4:30.

Five Points Pizza brings pie game to Parma

We all know the folks at Five Points Pizza are good at making a pie. They’re about to show just how good, as they travel to Parma, Italy, as part of the U.S Pizza Team, competing in the The World Pizza Championships against hundreds of other pizza purveyors from around the globe.

Nashville Limited Edition Club celebrates first release

Have you heard about the Nashville Limited Edition Club? Pretty cool concept:

“A collaboration between local businesses Brown Dog Bindery and East Side Story, which pairs a Nashville author with a Nashville artist(s) for one year culminating in a collaborative, limited-edition publication printed and bound by Nashville businesses and made available through East Side Story ― a bookstore focused solely on Nashville authors.”

The Club will celebrate its first collaborative effort — The Wolf’s Bane, written by author Betsy Phillips and illustrated by print makers Lesley Patterson-Marx, Carrie Cox, Megan Kelley, Bryce Coatney, and Jessica Owings-Crouch — at East Side Story on Friday, May 22, with a reading from the author and the screening of a documentary that digs into some historic Nashville locations that feed into this tale of a historical Nashvillian werewolf.

Attendees will be able to snag their limited copy there — both a handbound hardcover in a handmade pine box and paperback edition will be made available. You can purchase either online now.

Hear and tell East Nashville Tales at Shelby Park

Shelby Bottoms Nature Center routinely has great (often free) events programming to partake in, but there’s a particularly apt one coming up this month: Saturday, May 30’s East Nashville Tales, an open house event “highlighting the history of East Nashville, Shelby Park, Shelby Bottoms, and the people that shaped it to be the wonderful place it is today.”

You’re invited to come by noon to 3 to listen and share, learn about our neighborhood and add your voice to the discussion.

Jeni’s is reopening

As we mentioned last month, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams scoop shops, including the one in East Nashville, have been shuttered as the company explored the root of and made production changes due to a Listeria issue.

The company announced this week that the closed doors are set to reopen ahead of the Memorial Day weekend, on Friday, May 22, at 7 p.m.

Initially, they’ll be working with a limited collection of flavors, including longtime favorite Salty Caramel and new limited-edition flavor Sun-Popped Corn.

QUICK BITS

- Good excuse to keep your kids reading voraciously this summer: Fairytales Bookstore’s Summer Reading Program punchcard, which gives you a free book with the purchase of nine. Snag one at the store, 114 S. 11th St.

- Congrats to the OG Barista Parlor, which turned 3 on May 12.

- Old Made Good is back with another outdoor Dinner and a Movie hang, showing The Big Lebowski in the parking lot at 3701 Gallatin on Sunday, May 31. Electric Sliders will be serving burgers and Blue Monkey Shaved Ice is headed there too.

- Psst: If you follow Tiffany’s Boutique on Instagram at @tiffanysboutiquenash, you can snag 10 percent off at the shop.